In 2019, Minnesota indie rap mainstay Brother Ali embarked on a 15th anniversary tour in celebration of his second album, Shadows On The Sun. The project has since become a hallmark for underground hip-hop both from the Rhymesayers extended universe and in the genre more generally. But to hear Ali (neé Jason) Douglas Newman tell it, he wasn’t sure whether anyone outside of himself and the project’s producer, Atmosphere’s Ant, would ever hear it. Speaking about the recording process in a reflective interview with Wordplay Magazine, Ali said, “When I made that album, I hadn’t been on tour yet. I really didn’t know if anyone would ever hear it.” The low-pressure environment regarding the album was freeing for Ali, who turned in an indie rap masterpiece, one that remains a sterlin...